Visual Representations of Dance and Gender in the Hebrew Bible and the Ancient World

Authors

  • Ilona Rashkow SUNY Stony Brook

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/post.26909

Keywords:

dance, Music, Bible, Ancient Near East, Iconography, visual art

Abstract

This essay outlines the visual reception of dance in the Hebrew Bible and the broader ancient world. It begins with depictions of dance within the visual culture of the ancient Near East, as well as Greek, Roman and Egyptian visual art. It next explores texts from the Hebrew Bible which depict dance and outlines various ways in which these have been brought to life visually through the centuries. The representation of gender in these visual depictions is drawn out and explored throughout the essay.

Author Biography

  • Ilona Rashkow, SUNY Stony Brook

    Ilona Rashkow holds a PhD in Comparative Literature, is Professor Emerita at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and teaches regularly at New York University. Among her book publications are Taboo or Not Taboo: The Hebrew Bible and Human Sexuality (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2000); The Phallacy of Genesis: A Feminist-Psychoanalytic Approach (Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1993); and Upon the Dark Places: Anti-Semitism and Sexism In English Renaissance Biblical Translation (Sheffield: Sheffield Press, 1990). She has also published over twenty chapters in other books; twenty-six academic journal articles; and ten articles in academic reference works. She presents papers routinely at national and international academic conferences; has been the Visiting Aaron Aronoff Chair in Judaic Studies at the University of Alabama; and a Visiting Research Scholar at the Jewish Theological Seminary.

References

Biran, Avraham. 2003. “The Dancer from Dan.” Near Eastern Archaeology 66: 128–132.

Burgh, Theodore. 2006. Listening to the Artifacts. New York: T&T Clark.

Collon, Dominique. 2003. “Dance in Ancient Mesopotamia.” Near Eastern Archaeology 3: 96–102.

Day, Peggy L. 1989. “From the Child is Born the Woman: The Story of Jephthah’s Daughter.” Gender and Difference in Ancient Israel, edited by Peggy L. Day, 58–74. Minneapolis: Fortress.

Exum, J. Cheryl. 1993. “Murder They Wrote.” Fragmented Women: Feminist (Sub) Versions of Biblical Narratives, 16–41. Sheffield. Sheffield Press.

Fewell, Danna Nolan. 1998. “Judges.” Women’s Bible Commentary, edited by Carol A. Newsom and Sharon H. Ringe, 73–83. Philadelphia, PA: Westminster John Knox.

Garfinkel, Yosef. 2003. “The Earliest Dancing Scenes in the Near East.” Near Eastern Archaeology 66: 84–95.

Kassing, Gayle. 2007. History of Dance. Champaign: Human Kinetics.

Kilmer, Anne Draffkorn. 1998. “The Musical Instruments from Ur and Ancient Mesopotamian Music.” Expedition 40(2): 12–19.

Mazar, A. 2003. “Ritual Dancing in the Iron Age.” Near Eastern Archaeology 66: 126–127.

Russaw, Kimberly D. 2018. Daughters in the Hebrew Bible. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books/Fortress Press.

Sendrey, Alfred. 1969. Music in Ancient Israel. New York: Philosophical Library.

Spencer, Patricia. 2003. “Dance in Ancient Egypt.” Near Eastern Archaeology 66(3): 111–121.

Trible, Phyllis. 1984. Texts of Terror: Literary-Feminist Readings of Biblical Narratives. Minneapolis: Fortress Press.

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Published

2024-11-08

Issue

EARLY ACCESS TO FORTHCOMING ARTICLES

Section

Articles

License

© Equinox Publishing Ltd.

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How to Cite

Rashkow, I. (2024). Visual Representations of Dance and Gender in the Hebrew Bible and the Ancient World. Postscripts: The Journal of Sacred Texts, Cultural Histories, and Contemporary Contexts. https://doi.org/10.1558/post.26909